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Boston in August, Detroit in July

Macworld Expo, put on by Mitch Hall Associates on one U.S. coast on January and the other in August, often seems to be the event in the Macintosh industry. There are also Macworld Expos in Canada and elsewhere in the world, and wherever Macworld goes, it seems to overshadow other Mac conventions and events.

Until this year, it seemed that Mac users and managers in between the east and west coasts had to settle for an occasional major event in Chicago. Now, though, the Midwest Mac Expo comes to Detroit to serve the many Macintosh users in Michigan and the surrounding areas (including Canada). The event is scheduled for the 16th and 17th of July.

The Midwest Mac Expo is the brainchild of MacGroup-Detroit, which bills itself as the metropolitan Detroit area's largest Macintosh user's group. Founded in August 1986 by Terry White, MacGroup prides itself on bringing Macintosh technology to the public.

Vendors from around the world will show the latest in Macintosh computing technology, including RISC technology (such as PowerPC), mobile computing, multimedia, and other technologies. The show is at the Southfield Civic Center, convenient to Southeastern Michigan's freeway system, and only 20 minutes from Canada.

The admission price is reminiscent of early computer fairs; general exhibit admission tickets are just $5 per day. A business price of $50 includes exhibit tickets for both days, seminar and presentation admission, and a CD-ROM full of Expo materials, demos, and free or shareware programs. By comparison, the Macworld Expos charge $25 for exhibits only and $120 for the exhibits and seminar tickets (and that's with the pre-registration discount).

This isn't to say the Macworld Expo doesn't have its place. The Boston show is one of the central events of the Macintosh industry each year, and as usual, there will be a TidBITS contingent in Boston this August 2nd through 5th. In addition to the show itself, Boston is great for some Italian food, a cup of chowder, or a few of the traditional Boston beers. (There's nothing quite like Boston in August!) The pre-registration discount for Macworld Boston lasts until 24-Jun-94, so you may still have a little time to take advantage of the lower price.